Dear School Family,
It has been a fun couple of weeks here at school. Our boys and girls basketball teams brought home championships. Congratulations to both teams! We are very proud of you and your excellent sportsmanship. During this Lenten season, we will further our Lenten theme and “Journey with Jesus.” Seventh Grade has been practicing the Stations of the Cross for our first live performance in years. Seventh Grade families are invited to see the show on Tuesday at 10:30 am in our school gymnasium. Masks are optional but not required. Students in grades 3 through 8 will be in attendance as well. On Ash Wednesday, we were able to receive ashes in our beautiful church for the first time in two years. Thank you to Father Wrightson and Father Rinaldi for giving our students this opportunity to grow in their faith! Any and all students were offered ashes. Most did participate.
Good things are happening around here! Our 8th grade class has earned several scholarships. We are compiling a complete list and will share that shortly in a separate message or Paw Print. Congratulations to the entire Class of 2022! They are a class with a wide range of talents and abilities. They won scholarships and were awarded grants for academics, the arts, and for essay writing skills. We are so very proud of them.
There were Leprechaun shenanigans on St. Patrick’s Day. The sneaky Leprechaun popped into classes while students were at specials. It was a fun day. We raised $182 for the Missions, charging only $1 to participate. Thank you! Our students have been generously giving to our Lenten Food Drive to support the St. Patrick’s Center. Once again I share my gratitude. Our families are generous. We really try to impress upon our students the importance of taking care of others less fortunate than us. We hope to bring back more in-person service opportunities next school year. I miss doing that, and I know our students value those experiences and learn better first hand.
Several classes are learning about the life cycle and will be talking about new life after Lent. Mrs. Achenbach and her middle school classes were able to watch chicks hatch this week, right on schedule. I would like to give a shout out to the University of Delaware for this opportunity. What fun and cuteness!
I had the pleasure of attending my first official “Synod” at our Diocesan Administrators meeting. A Synod is both an event and a process where clergy, religious, and the laity gather to discuss important matters of the faith. Synods are transformative events that lead to renewal in the Church’s life. A synod involves listening and speaking out. We are “journeying together” as a Church. As members of the Church we are all called to participate in forwarding its mission. Diocesan school administrators met, listened to Jesus’s words with an open mind and heart, and listened to each other without prejudice. We shared positive experiences of journeying together in our local church and struggles we see for its future. We talked about how we are “journeying together” in our local church (i.e. diocese, parish, school, or organization). We shared the challenges our Church faces and the successes we can celebrate with joy. As you can imagine, our greatest source of celebration and pride is the joy we experience in our schools with your children everyday. I recalled the day before when I was miserable trying to sort through over 400 emails and deal with deadlines and mind-numbing paperwork. I hadn’t been into a classroom for a single observation. A first grader was taking a walk to get rid of “extra energy” and just wandered freely and carelessly into my office, hugged me, and said, “I love you.” That was totally unexpected and produced multiple “Awes” from the office staff and hallway. I believe that was the Holy Spirit knowing what I needed at that moment. So, I thank you for sending me your joy every day. We know our Church as a whole has challenges ahead of us. However, we hold the future right here within these walls. I have the pleasure of witnessing that every day, and I do appreciate that gift. At the conclusion of our listening/reflecting activity, we put together our thoughts on action steps to help sustain our church. Each synod is unique. Our work will be presented to Bishop Koenig and then he will forward the information that was gathered from multiple synods throughout the diocese to Pope Francis. I strongly encourage you to participate in one if given the opportunity.
I will be away next Wednesday through Friday at the Diocesan Administrator’s Retreat. Know that, as always, I will keep you and your extended families in my prayers and daily reflection times. Mr. Shields will be available should anyone need anything those three days. I will be in contact with him in the evenings and am always available for any emergency.
Thank you for your work on our parent survey for our Middle States accreditation. We have had 54 responses to date. Please take some time to fill these out for us. Monday is the deadline! Surveys will close at that time. The average time spent on them was 12 minutes; much shorter than we had expected. Please email Mr. Shields if you need the link sent again. We will be randomly selecting a few students from grades 6 and 8 to do the students’ version of the survey. We are asking all 5th and 7th graders to complete it as well.
Thank you to those who supported our Chipotle Night!
Field Day will be May 12th. 8th Grade students will assist Mrs. Orensky to run this fun event. We pray for good weather, as this event is rain or shine. We will offer Kona Ice to all students that day. Let your child’s teacher know in advance if your child is not able to have Kona Ice. We will offer another option for food allergies, or you may send in your own preferred snack that day.
School is closed on the 27th and 28th! We will be working on Middle States on the 27th and we will have a day off (Staff Wellness Day from Bishop Koenig).
Safety Reminder: A parent asked me to share this concern, and it is one I do feel strongly about. It is always a source of angst for me. I dread 3pm until 3:15pm, a time I should actually enjoy 🙂 Please be careful when parking out front. We have witnessed near misses with three students in the past two weeks. These incidents were when children walked into the street to get in the passenger side of the car. Students walk in between cars and are unaware of car movement. Drivers also have difficulty seeing students due to their height. It also occurred when a student walked directly out in front of a car. All three incidents were when the parent (seated inside the car) was picking up the child. Please use the crossing guard or assist your child in the street rather than letting them walk around the car. Letting them walk around to the passenger side of the car assumes that both your child and all drivers on the street are aware. I assure you that is rarely the case. People fly up the street. Cars double park. Buses try to maneuver. It is a dangerous situation, but it is one that is 100% within parent control. Please help us keep your child safe after the school day. Thank you!
Lenten Blessings,
Mrs. White
More information if you are interested. This is an excerpt (the beginning) of Pope Francis’s Homily regarding synod.
Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis
St. Peter’s Basilica
Sunday, 10 October 2021
A certain rich man came up to Jesus “as he was setting out on his journey” (Mk 10:17). The Gospels frequently show us Jesus “on a journey”; he walks alongside people and listens to the questions and concerns lurking in their hearts. He shows us that God is not found in neat and orderly places, distant from reality, but walks ever at our side. He meets us where we are, on the often rocky roads of life. Today, as we begin this synodal process, let us begin by asking ourselves – all of us, Pope, bishops, priests, religious and laity – whether we, the Christian community, embody this “style” of God, who travels the paths of history and shares in the life of humanity. Are we prepared for the adventure of this journey? Or are we fearful of the unknown, preferring to take refuge in the usual excuses: “It’s useless” or “We’ve always done it this way”?
Celebrating a Synod means walking on the same road, walking together. Let us look at Jesus. First, he encounters the rich man on the road; he then listens to his questions, and finally he helps him discern what he must do to inherit eternal life. Encounter, listen and discern. I would like to reflect on these three verbs that characterize the Synod.